Kazuo Shiraga (白髪 一雄, Shiraga Kazuo; August 12, 1924 – April 8, 2008) was a Japanese abstract painter and the…
Kazuo Shiraga (白髪 一雄, Shiraga Kazuo; August 12, 1924 – April 8, 2008) was a Japanese abstract painter and the first-generation member of the postwar artists collective Gutai Art Association (Gutai). As a Gutai member, he was a prolific, inventive, and pioneering experimentalist who tackled a range of media: in addition to painting, he worked in performance art, three-dimensional object making, conceptual art, and installations, many of which are preserved only in documentary photos and films. Shiraga is best known for his abstract paintings, or the so-called “foot painting”, which he created by spreading oil paint initially on paper and later on canvas with his feet. Through this original method he had invented in 1954, he made a critical engagement with the tradition of painting, the result of which resonated with European and American gestural abstraction of the 1950s, such as Informel and Abstract Expressionism. In the 1960s and 1970s, he reintroduced tools such as boards and spatulas for spreading the paint. His experiments outside painting, such as Challenging Mud and Ultramodern Sanbasō, were closely associated with the notion of “picturing,” derived from e (絵), or “picture” in Japanese, that Gutai members shared in exploring new ways of painting. At the same time, his innovations were at times associated with his embrace of violence and the grotesque, which Shiraga had been fascinated with since his childhood. Among the Gutai members who were promoted by the French art critic Michel Tapié in Europe and the US, Shiraga was most recognized after the leader Jirō Yoshihara and most commercially successful as a solo artist as early as the late 1950s; and his success continues to date with in the international auctions.
Famous Japanese People: Painter
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Akira Kanayama (金山明 Kanayama Akira; 1924–2006) was a Japanese avant-garde artist and an early member of The Gutai Art…
Akira Kanayama (金山明 Kanayama Akira; 1924–2006) was a Japanese avant-garde artist and an early member of The Gutai Art Association. An active contributor to Gutai's exhibitions and performance events, Kanayama was one of the pivotal figures of the group. His artworks were characterised by witty experiments with unconventional materials such as toy cars and signal lights for level crossing. He left Gutai in 1965 with Atsuko Tanaka, whom he married later in the same year.
Madokoro Akutagawa Saori (芥川 (間所) 紗織, Akutagawa (Madokoro) Saori; 1924–31 January 1966) was a Japanese painter whose…
Madokoro Akutagawa Saori (芥川 (間所) 紗織, Akutagawa (Madokoro) Saori; 1924–31 January 1966) was a Japanese painter whose works were often associated with primitivism, folkloric and mythological subjects, as well as unique dyeing techniques. Her paintings from the 1950s manifest various themes from distorted and dramatic portrayal of women to divine narratives based on traditional Japanese folklore. After briefly studying and living in the US, Akutagawa shifted her artistic exploration towards abstraction before her death at a young age in 1966.
Sachio Otani (大谷 幸夫, Ōtani Sachio; February 20, 1924 – January 2, 2013) was a noted Japanese architect.
Kinuko Emi (江見絹子, Emi Kinuko; born Ogino Kinuko, 荻野絹子, on June 7, 1923, died on January 13, 2015) was a Japanese…
Kinuko Emi (江見絹子, Emi Kinuko; born Ogino Kinuko, 荻野絹子, on June 7, 1923, died on January 13, 2015) was a Japanese painter. Emi is best known for her abstract painting in bold colors featuring the motif of four classical elements (fire, air, water, and earth). At the 31st Venice Biennale in 1962, Emi's work was exhibited in the Japan Pavilion alongside that of four male artists, making her the first Japanese woman artist to be shown at the country's Pavilion. She had retrospective exhibitions at the Yokohama Civic Art Gallery in 1996, the Museum of Modern Art, Kamakura in 2004 and Himeji City Museum of Art in 2010. Emi's works are in the collection of the National Museum of Art, Osaka, the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo, the Museum of Modern Art, Kamakura & Hayama, Yokohama Museum of Art, and Takamatsu Art Museum, among others. Emi's daughter, Anna Ogino, is an Akutagawa Prize-winning novelist and emeritus professor of French literature at Keio University, Tokyo, who serves as the custodian of her mother's works and legacy.
Sadamasa Motonaga (元永定正, Motonaga Sadamasa, born November, 26, 1922, in Iga Ueno, died October 3, 2011, in Takarazuka)…
Sadamasa Motonaga (元永定正, Motonaga Sadamasa, born November, 26, 1922, in Iga Ueno, died October 3, 2011, in Takarazuka) was a Japanese visual artist and book illustrator, and a first-generation member of the postwar Japanese artist group Gutai Art Association, Gutai for short. Motonaga’s oeuvre, comprising paintings, objects, performances and stage art, ceramics, murals and installation artworks and picture books, is characterized by his humorous, enlivening (animating) use of biomorphic abstract shapes inspired by nature and manga cartoons, as well as the exploration of the materiality of color. He is most known for his ephemeral works from Gutai’s experimental exhibition projects, such as Liquid: Red and Works (Water) from 1955 and 1956, which used vinyl sheets and tubes filled with color-tinted water; his stage works from 1957 and 1958, which involved smoke as artistic material; and for his Informel-style paintings from the late 1950s that experimented with pouring liquid paint on to canvases. Promoted by the French art critic Michel Tapié, who during the 1950s and 1960s attempted to establish Informel as a global movement, Motonaga became one of the few Gutai members who received international and national recognition as a solo artist beyond the Gutai context. He was offered a yearlong residency by the Japan Society in New York in 1966, during which he introduced airbrushing and a hard-edge style to his paintings. After leaving Gutai in 1971, Motonaga’s work again expanded beyond painting to ceramics, interior design, murals, and public performances and installation artworks, all of which he continuously developed around his signature-style of animated biomorphic shapes. The children's picture books, which Motonaga created in collaboration with the poet and translator Shuntarō Tanikawa beginning in 1970, became bestselling books. He was married to graphic designer Etsuko Nakatsuji, with whom he also collaborated on reconstruction projects in the aftermath of the Great Hanshin earthquake in 1995.
Shigeru Izumi (Japanese: 泉 茂, Hepburn: Izumi Shigeru) (1922–1995) was a Japanese painter and printmaker.
Iwao Akiyama (秋山 巌, Akiyama Iwao; March 21, 1921 – September 15, 2014) was a Japanese woodblock printmaker and artist…
Iwao Akiyama (秋山 巌, Akiyama Iwao; March 21, 1921 – September 15, 2014) was a Japanese woodblock printmaker and artist known for distinctive prints of owls, cats, and other animals in the style of naive or folk art. Akiyama was born in 1921 in Takeda, Ōita Prefecture, on the island of Kyushu. He studied drawing under the direction of a Buddhist monk during his childhood, then at the Taiheiyo Bijutsu Gakkō, graduating 1956. He originally pursued suiboku-ga, a type of ink painting. However, Akiyama changed his focus to woodblock printing after meeting Shikō Munakata, under whom he studied from 1959 until 1965. Akiyama's prints are primarily made in black ink, and early ones contained a single red dot within the image, although later works sometimes feature more colors. In his prints, Akiyama limited himself to few subjects: animals, nude female figures, Buddhist deities and Buddhist monks. Akiyama's work often incorporated verses of haiku and other text by Japanese poets like Ryōkan Taigu, Kobayashi Issa, and Zen monk Santōka Taneda, as well as from his own original poetry. Iwao Akiyama died in Matsudo, Chiba, on September 15, 2014, at the age of 93.
Kihachiro Ueda (上田毅八郎) was a Japanese painter. His primary subject matter is Japanese ships. During the Second World…
Kihachiro Ueda (上田毅八郎) was a Japanese painter. His primary subject matter is Japanese ships. During the Second World War, Ueda was an anti-aircraft gunner assigned to several merchant ships. He served on about 28 merchant ships, and 6 of those were attacked and destroyed while he was aboard. During his spare time, he would draw ships. On 13 November 1944, while assigned to Kinka Maru, he was severely injured during a U.S. air raid on Manila Bay. He lost the use of his right hand, but subsequently was able to draw and paint with his left hand. His painting of the Ōryoku Maru (sunk 15 December 1944) is part of the Hell Ship Memorial Project's display at the Subic Bay Historical Center, Philippines. Ueda started working with the model company Tamiya Corporation in the early 1960s. Ueda illustrated most of the package artwork for Tamiya's Waterline Series (which consists of about 150 models). Ueda died on 26 June 2016.
Kikuji Yamashita (山下 菊二, Yamashita Kikuji; October 8, 1919 – November 23, 1986) was a Japanese Surrealist painter…
Kikuji Yamashita (山下 菊二, Yamashita Kikuji; October 8, 1919 – November 23, 1986) was a Japanese Surrealist painter associated with the postwar avant-garde art movement in Japan. His artworks were featured prominently in the 2010 documentary film ANPO: Art X War by American documentary filmmaker Linda Hoaglund.
Chihiro Iwasaki (いわさき ちひろ (岩崎 知弘), Iwasaki Chihiro; 15 December 1918 – 8 August 1974) was a Japanese artist and…
Chihiro Iwasaki (いわさき ちひろ (岩崎 知弘), Iwasaki Chihiro; 15 December 1918 – 8 August 1974) was a Japanese artist and illustrator best known for her water-colored illustrations of flowers and children, the theme of which was "peace and happiness for children".
Fumiko Hori (堀 文子, Hori Fumiko; July 2, 1918 – February 5, 2019) was a Japanese artist, known for her paintings in the…
Fumiko Hori (堀 文子, Hori Fumiko; July 2, 1918 – February 5, 2019) was a Japanese artist, known for her paintings in the Nihonga style.
Chang Ucchin (Korean: 장욱진; Hanja: 張旭鎭, 26 November 1917 – 27 December 1990) was one of the most representative modern…
Chang Ucchin (Korean: 장욱진; Hanja: 張旭鎭, 26 November 1917 – 27 December 1990) was one of the most representative modern Korean artists. He was known for his oil paintings that depicted Korean sceneries, animals, and children in simple and naive painting styles.
Tōichi Katō (加藤 東一, Katō Tōichi; 6 January 1916 – 3 December 1996) was a Japanese painter in the Nihonga style and…
Tōichi Katō (加藤 東一, Katō Tōichi; 6 January 1916 – 3 December 1996) was a Japanese painter in the Nihonga style and board chairman of the Nitten, a significant Japanese art conference. He and his older brother, Eizō Katō, have a museum dedicated to their works in Gifu, Gifu Prefecture.
Sekino Jun'ichirō (Japanese: 関野 凖一郎; born 1914 – 1988) was a Japanese woodblock printer, one of the major postwar…
Sekino Jun'ichirō (Japanese: 関野 凖一郎; born 1914 – 1988) was a Japanese woodblock printer, one of the major postwar artists of the sosaku hanga ("creative print") movement.
Yuki Katsura (桂ゆき, Katsura Yuki, also Katsura Yukiko, 10 October 1913 – 5 February 1991) was a Japanese artist whose…
Yuki Katsura (桂ゆき, Katsura Yuki, also Katsura Yukiko, 10 October 1913 – 5 February 1991) was a Japanese artist whose career spanned from the prewar to the postwar eras. During her six-decade career, Katsura did not conform to one particular artistic genre or style, instead employing a variety of approaches including painting, mixed media collage, and caricature to depict a range of subjects using folkloric allegory, religious iconography, realism, and experiments into abstraction. She was trained in both Japanese and Western painting styles and traditions, which was a rare accomplishment for a woman of her time. Katsura engaged with subjects that responded to critical socio-political events in mid-century Japan, such as societal expectations for Japanese women, the militarization of Japan, the post-war occupation, the rise of nuclear power, and gender equality. Her diverse approaches, engagement with critical issues, and adherence to personal autonomy gained her critical acclaim; she has been called a "pioneer among women artists," and is considered influential to the genesis of the Japanese avant-garde before and after the Asia Pacific War. Katsura has been the subject of several large museum retrospectives in Japan, including the Shimonoseki Municipal Museum of Art (1991); Ibaraki Prefectural Museum of Modern Art (1998); and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo (2013). While she is very well-known in her native Japan, Katsura was left out of the canonization of Japanese art and art market in a Western context for many years. In the 2010s, she became the subject of more curatorial and art historical interest and publications in English. Katsura's artworks are included in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, Kamakura & Hayama; Ohara Museum of Art; Itabashi Art Museum; the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo; the Yokohama Museum of Art; and the University of Arizona Museum of Art.
Kenzō Tange (丹下 健三, Tange Kenzō; 4 September 1913 – 22 March 2005) was a Japanese architect. Born in Sakai and raised…
Kenzō Tange (丹下 健三, Tange Kenzō; 4 September 1913 – 22 March 2005) was a Japanese architect. Born in Sakai and raised in China and southern Japan, Tange was inspired from an early age by the work of Le Corbusier and designed his first buildings under Imperial Japan. He first achieved recognition for his projects to reconstruct the destroyed cities of postwar Japan, particularly Hiroshima, where he designed the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park. His engagement with the Congres Internationaux d'Architecture Moderne in the 1950s made him one of the first Japanese architects to achieve international recognition. Renowned for synthesizing traditional Japanese styles with modernism, Tange's work was emblematic of the Japanese postwar boom. However, he built major projects on five continents. He was a forerunner, mentor, and patron of the metabolist movement. He was also known as an ambitious, original urban planner whose ideas inspired the reconstruction of cities including Skopje. Tange would continue designing buildings until his death in 2005. Tange won awards for his contributions to architecture, including the Royal Gold Medal in 1965, the AIA Gold Medal in 1966, the Praemium Imperiale for Architecture in 1993, and the Pritzker Prize, the "Nobel Prize of architecture", in 1987.
Kim Whanki (Korean: 김환기; Hanja: 金煥基; April 3, 1913 – July 25, 1974) was a Korean painter and pioneering abstract…
Kim Whanki (Korean: 김환기; Hanja: 金煥基; April 3, 1913 – July 25, 1974) was a Korean painter and pioneering abstract artist. Kim lived and worked in a number of cities and countries during his lifetime, including Tokyo, Japan; Seoul and Busan, Korea; Paris, France; and New York City, USA, where he died. Kim belongs to the first generation of Korean Abstract artists, mixing oriental concepts and ideals with abstraction. With refined and moderated formative expression based on Korean Lyricism, he created his characteristic art world. His artworks largely dealt with diverse hues and patterns. Kim's early works were semi-abstract paintings which allowed viewers to see certain forms, but his later works were more deeply absorbed abstract paintings, filled with lines and spaces. The artist's partner Hyang-an Kim established the Whanki Foundation in 1978 and opened the Whanki Museum in 1992. The Museum, located in Seoul, was built by Korean American architect Kyu Sung Woo. A pioneer of abstract painting and the godfather of the Dansaekhwa movement, Whanki Kim established his place in Korean history and art at an early age. Whanki Kim was an artist whose profound impact on the history of Korean art was seen in the first wave of abstract art. His nomadic lifestyle led him to many different places, like Japan, France, and the U.S., which differentiated his artwork from other artists, who created their art based in Korea, due to the lack of opportunities for travel. As a peripatetic artist gaining inspiration from artists of other origins, Whanki Kim's style of abstract art transformed from geometric abstraction to art with traditional Korean motifs to monochrome paintings of dots and lines. He balanced keeping Korean values and beliefs close and incorporating new foreign techniques into his works, which evidently reflect his personal identity and Korea's national identity, impacted by the political and social conditions of the mid-1900s.
Toko Shinoda (篠田 桃紅, Shinoda Tōkō; 28 March 1913 – 1 March 2021) was a Japanese artist. Shinoda is best known for her…
Toko Shinoda (篠田 桃紅, Shinoda Tōkō; 28 March 1913 – 1 March 2021) was a Japanese artist. Shinoda is best known for her abstract sumi ink paintings and prints. Shinoda's oeuvre was predominantly executed using the traditional means and media of East Asian calligraphy, but her resulting abstract ink paintings and prints express a nuanced visual affinity with the bold black brushstrokes of mid-century abstract expressionism. In the postwar New York art world, Shinoda's works were exhibited at the prominent art galleries including the Bertha Schaefer Gallery and the Betty Parsons Gallery. Shinoda remained active all her life and in 2013, she was honored with a touring retrospective exhibition at four venues in Gifu Prefecture (Gifu Collection of Modern Arts; Toko Shinoda Art Space; Museum of Fine Arts, Gifu; and Gallery Kohodo) to celebrate her 100th birthday. Shinoda has had solo exhibitions at the Seibu Museum at Art, Tokyo in 1989, the Museum of Fine Arts, Gifu in 1992, the Singapore Art Museum in 1996, the Hara Museum of Contemporary Art in 2003, the Sogo Museum of Art in 2021, the Tokyo Opera City Art Gallery in 2022, and among many others. Shinoda's works are in the collection of the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, the Art Institute of Chicago, the British Museum, the Brooklyn Museum, the Harvard Art Museums, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, the National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, the Singapore Art Museum, the Smithsonian Institution, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, the National Gallery of Victoria, and other leading museums of the world. Shinoda was also a prolific writer published more than 20 books.
Hideo Hagiwara (萩原 英雄, Hagiwara Hideo; 1913 – November 4, 2007) was a Japanese artist who worked mainly with woodblock…
Hideo Hagiwara (萩原 英雄, Hagiwara Hideo; 1913 – November 4, 2007) was a Japanese artist who worked mainly with woodblock prints. He was born in Kōfu, Yamanashi. Between 1921 and 1929 he lived in Korea and Manchuria. He studied at the Tokyo School of Fine Arts, where he graduated at the Oil Painting Section in 1938. While still there he attended Un'ichi Hiratsuka's extracurricular woodblock printing course, and in the same year he became quality controller at the Takamizawa Woodblock Print Company. He was conscripted into the army in 1943. In 1945 he had lost his house, his atelier and nearly all his early works. Around 1950 he had sufficiently recovered to start painting again. At the same time he started making Sōsaku Hanga, both figurative and abstract prints. He was known as a constant innovator and he was generally considered one of the best post-World War II Sōsaku Hanga artists.
Jun'ichi Nakahara (Japanese: 中原淳一; February 16, 1913 – April 19, 1983) was a Japanese graphic artist and fashion…
Jun'ichi Nakahara (Japanese: 中原淳一; February 16, 1913 – April 19, 1983) was a Japanese graphic artist and fashion designer born in Higashikagawa. He was also a French doll maker. He became famous as an illustrator in the 1920s when his work appeared in the magazine Shojo No Tomo. According to the scholar Nozomi Masuda, Nakahara "greatly developed the eyes of shojo manga characters". Nakahara was married to the actress Kuniko Ashihara. The couple had four children, including the painter Shuichi Nakahara.
Toshinobu Onosato (June 8, 1912 – November 30, 1986) was a Japanese printmaker. His work frequently included geometric…
Toshinobu Onosato (June 8, 1912 – November 30, 1986) was a Japanese printmaker. His work frequently included geometric shapes like circles, rectangles, and triangles, leading to his reputation as a pioneer of scientifically oriented design.
Okuda Genso (奥田元宋) (6 July 1912 – 15 February 2003) was one of the most famous Nihonga painters of the Showa era. He…
Okuda Genso (奥田元宋) (6 July 1912 – 15 February 2003) was one of the most famous Nihonga painters of the Showa era. He gave his name to a red pigment "Genso red".
Shunsuke Matsumoto (松本 竣介, Matsumoto Shunsuke; 1912–1948) was a Japanese painter, who primarily painted in the Yōga…
Shunsuke Matsumoto (松本 竣介, Matsumoto Shunsuke; 1912–1948) was a Japanese painter, who primarily painted in the Yōga ("Western painting") style. Matsumoto is known for his urban landscapes. His works can be divided into two series: those depicting anonymous urban landscapes and people in cold blue tones in a montage style, and those depicting Tokyo and Yokohama landscapes in dull brown tones. For a short period between 1947 and 1948, Matsumoto also painted Cubist-style works.
Toshi Maruki (丸木俊, Maruki Toshi ; born Akamatsu Toshi, 赤松俊, on February 11, 1912, in Hokkaido, died on January 13…
Toshi Maruki (丸木俊, Maruki Toshi ; born Akamatsu Toshi, 赤松俊, on February 11, 1912, in Hokkaido, died on January 13, 2000, in Saitama; also known as Akamatsu Toshiko, 赤松俊子) was a Japanese painter. Maruki is best known for the Hiroshima Panels (Genbaku no zu) series that she and her husband Iri Maruki (丸木位里, 1901–1995) produced collaboratively from around 1950. The Marukis took on heavy themes such as the atomic bomb, genocide, and environmental pollution, and constantly voiced their anti-war and peace message through their art. Toshi Maruki is also known as an accomplished picture book author.
Yasuo Kazuki (Japanese: 香月泰男, October 25, 1911 – 8 March 1974) was a Japanese artist known for his paintings depicting…
Yasuo Kazuki (Japanese: 香月泰男, October 25, 1911 – 8 March 1974) was a Japanese artist known for his paintings depicting life as a prisoner of war in Siberia. This set of paintings, known as the Siberian Series, was derived from his experiences in concentration camps after being taken as a prisoner of war in 1945 following World War II. After returning to Japan, he continued to paint until his death at age 62.
Minoru Kawabata (川端実, Kawabata Minoru; born on May 22, 1911, died on June 29, 2001) was a Japanese artist. Kawabata is…
Minoru Kawabata (川端実, Kawabata Minoru; born on May 22, 1911, died on June 29, 2001) was a Japanese artist. Kawabata is best known for his color field paintings. Between 1960 and 1981, Kawabata had 11 solo shows at the prominent Betty Parsons Gallery in New York. At the 31st Venice Biennale in 1962, Kawabata’s work was exhibited in the Japan Pavilion alongside that of four other Japanese artists. Kawabata has had solo exhibitions at the Everson Museum of Art in 1974, the Museum of Modern Art, Kamakura in 1975, the National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto and Ohara Museum of Art in 1992, and Yokosuka Museum of Art in 2011. Kawabata’s works are in the collection of the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Artizon Museum, Everson Museum of Art, Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo, the Museum of Modern Art, Kamakura & Hayama, the Museum of Modern Art, São Paulo, the National Museum of Art, Osaka, the National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto, the National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, the Newark Museum of Art, Ohara Museum of Art, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, Yokohama Museum of Art, Yokosuka Museum of Art, among others.
Ei-Q (瑛九, Eikyū; April 28, 1911 – March 10, 1960, in English occasionally "Q. Ei" or "Ei Kyu") was a Japanese artist…
Ei-Q (瑛九, Eikyū; April 28, 1911 – March 10, 1960, in English occasionally "Q. Ei" or "Ei Kyu") was a Japanese artist who worked in a variety of media, including photography and engraving. He came to the forefront of the Japanese avant-garde with his 1936 collection of photo-dessins, a fusion of photograms and paintings. He also founded several art organizations, including the Democratic Artists Association.
Uzō Nishiyama (西山 夘三, Nishiyama Uzō; 1 March 1911 – 2 April 1994) was a Japanese modernist architect, city planner, and…
Uzō Nishiyama (西山 夘三, Nishiyama Uzō; 1 March 1911 – 2 April 1994) was a Japanese modernist architect, city planner, and architectural scholar. He is noted for his application of methods of scientific research to the study of architecture and urban planning. Nishiyama served as a professor at Kyoto University for over 25 years, and produced a number of seminal writings on architectural theory. The Uzo Nishiyama Memorial Library in Kyoto, which specializes in works relating to architecture and urban planning, is named after Nishiyama.
Kenichi Kuriyagawa (栗谷川健一, Kuriyagawa Ken'ichi; 28 February 1911 – 12 August 1999) was a Japanese painter and graphic…
Kenichi Kuriyagawa (栗谷川健一, Kuriyagawa Ken'ichi; 28 February 1911 – 12 August 1999) was a Japanese painter and graphic designer. He is known for tourism posters depicting Hokkaido, for designing the flag and emblem of Hokkaido Prefecture adopted in 1967, and for founding the first design school in Hokkaido. The Hokkaido Museum of Modern Art has described him as the "father of Hokkaido design".
Keiko Minami (南 桂子, Minami Keiko; 12 February 1911 – 1 December 2004) was a Japanese artist, aquatint engraver, and…
Keiko Minami (南 桂子, Minami Keiko; 12 February 1911 – 1 December 2004) was a Japanese artist, aquatint engraver, and poet. She is best known for her pictograph-like aquatints with a whimsical, childlike aesthetic.
Yoshio Fujimaki (藤牧義夫, Fujimaki Yoshio) (January 19, 1911 – disappeared September 2, 1935）was a Japanese printmaker who…
Yoshio Fujimaki (藤牧義夫, Fujimaki Yoshio) (January 19, 1911 – disappeared September 2, 1935）was a Japanese printmaker who was part of the Sōsaku-hanga movement. He focused mainly on depicting the Shitamachi area of Tokyo during the 1930s, and is known for creating a long Hakubyō scroll print focusing on areas surrounding the Sumida River. Fujimaki became an obscure figure after his disappearance at the age of 24, but a 1978 exhibition renewed interest in his work.
Yasushi Sugiyama (杉山 寧, Sugiyama Yasushi; 20 October 1909 – 20 October 1993) was a Japanese painter of the Shōwa and…
Yasushi Sugiyama (杉山 寧, Sugiyama Yasushi; 20 October 1909 – 20 October 1993) was a Japanese painter of the Shōwa and Heisei eras, who practiced the nihonga style of watercolour painting.
Motoichi Kumagai (熊谷 元一, Kumagai Motoichi; 12 July 1909 – 6 November 2010) was a Japanese photographer and illustrator…
Motoichi Kumagai (熊谷 元一, Kumagai Motoichi; 12 July 1909 – 6 November 2010) was a Japanese photographer and illustrator of books for children, known for his portrayal of rural and school life. He has illustrated numerous children's books, books containing his photography, and other works. His works have won prizes, beginning with a photography prize from the Mainichi Shimbun in 1955. He is sometimes credited as Motokazu Kumagai or Motoiti Kumagai.
Yozo Hamaguchi (April 5, 1909 - December 25, 2000) was a Japanese copper printmaker who specialized in mezzotint and…
Yozo Hamaguchi (April 5, 1909 - December 25, 2000) was a Japanese copper printmaker who specialized in mezzotint and was responsible for its resurgence as a printmaking medium in the mid-20th century. Hamaguchi's prints are distinguished for their careful attention to detail of boldly hued animals and objects contrasted against a velvety black background. The corpus of Hamaguchi's prints are focused on the still life genre. Once considered a major printmaking medium in Europe throughout the 17th, 18th, and 19th Centuries, the influence and technological ingenuity of photography signaled the end of mezzotint printmaking as a modern reproducible form. However, Hamaguchi valued its emphasis on tonality and texture as expressed in a work's lighting and tactile qualities. By working in a European-born printing technique, Hamaguchi received praise from the European, American, and Japanese art centers for his distinct mezzotint printing methods and re-popularization of the long-ignored medium. His works attained global exposure after Hamaguchi participated in the prestigious São Paulo Biennale in Brazil (1957) and was included in the Japanese Pavilion at the Venice Biennale in Italy (1960). Hamaguchi's legacy is preserved in the Musee Hamaguchi Yozo that possesses much of his prints and it frequently organizes exhibitions centered on his printmaking, alongside works by his wife Keiko Minami and contemporary practitioners of mezzotint printmaking.
Tadashige Ono (小野 忠重, Ono Tadashige; January 19, 1909, Tokyo – October 17, 1990) was a Japanese woodblock print artist…
Tadashige Ono (小野 忠重, Ono Tadashige; January 19, 1909, Tokyo – October 17, 1990) was a Japanese woodblock print artist prominent in the sōsaku hanga movement in twentieth century Japan.
Shingo Yamada (15 December 1908 – 7 July 1977) was a Japanese painter. His work was part of the painting event in the…
Shingo Yamada (15 December 1908 – 7 July 1977) was a Japanese painter. His work was part of the painting event in the art competition at the 1936 Summer Olympics.
Kuma Mukai (向井 久万, Mukai Kuma; 14 December 1908 – 20 January 1987) was a Japanese painter born in Osaka Prefecture…
Kuma Mukai (向井 久万, Mukai Kuma; 14 December 1908 – 20 January 1987) was a Japanese painter born in Osaka Prefecture, Japan in 1908. He lived for some time in Kamakura before his death in Tokyo in 1987. He is well known for his paintings of nude women, Buddhist images, and floral designs.
Mitsu Yashima (八島 光, Yashima Mitsu; born Tomoe Sasako (笹子 智江, Sasako Tomoe); October 11, 1908 – December 7, 1988) was…
Mitsu Yashima (八島 光, Yashima Mitsu; born Tomoe Sasako (笹子 智江, Sasako Tomoe); October 11, 1908 – December 7, 1988) was an artist, children's book author, and civic activist.
Taro Yashima (八島 太郎, Yashima Tarō; born Atsushi Iwamatsu (岩松 淳, Iwamatsu Atsushi); September 21, 1908 — June 30, 1994)…
Taro Yashima (八島 太郎, Yashima Tarō; born Atsushi Iwamatsu (岩松 淳, Iwamatsu Atsushi); September 21, 1908 — June 30, 1994) was a Japanese-American artist and children's book author. He immigrated to the United States in 1939 and assisted the U.S. war effort.
Fuku Akino (秋野 不矩, Akino Fuku; July 25, 1908 - October 11, 2001) was a Japanese painter. She was born in Futamata…
Fuku Akino (秋野 不矩, Akino Fuku; July 25, 1908 - October 11, 2001) was a Japanese painter. She was born in Futamata, Iwata-gun, Shizuoka Prefecture (currently, Nimata Town, Tenryu Ward, Hamamatsu City). She became known by her paintings of Indian themes, landscapes and peoples.
Tanaka Takashi (田中 孝, 22 July 1908 – 11 September 1977), known by his art name Tanaka Isson (田中 一村), was a Japanese…
Tanaka Takashi (田中 孝, 22 July 1908 – 11 September 1977), known by his art name Tanaka Isson (田中 一村), was a Japanese Nihonga painter from the Shōwa period noted for his flower-and-bird paintings of the Amami Islands.
Hideo Noda (野田 英夫, Noda Hideo; July 15, 1908 – January 12, 1939), also known as Hideo Benjamin Noda and Benjamin Hideo…
Hideo Noda (野田 英夫, Noda Hideo; July 15, 1908 – January 12, 1939), also known as Hideo Benjamin Noda and Benjamin Hideo Noda, was a Japanese-American modernist painter and muralist, member of the Shinseisakuha movement in Japan, student of Arnold Blanch, and uncle of Japanese printmaker Tetsuya Noda, as well as alleged communist spy recruited by Whittaker Chambers.
Kaii Higashiyama (東山 魁夷, Higashiyama Kaii; July 8, 1908 – May 6, 1999) was a Japanese writer and artist particularly…
Kaii Higashiyama (東山 魁夷, Higashiyama Kaii; July 8, 1908 – May 6, 1999) was a Japanese writer and artist particularly renowned for his Nihonga style paintings. As one of the most popular artists in post-war Japan, Higashiyama was awarded the Japan Art Academy Prize in 1956 and the Order of Culture in 1969.
Kazu Wakita (Japanese: 脇田和; 7 June 1908 – 27 November 2005) was a Japanese painter. His work was part of the painting…
Kazu Wakita (Japanese: 脇田和; 7 June 1908 – 27 November 2005) was a Japanese painter. His work was part of the painting event in the art competition at the 1936 Summer Olympics.
Ai-Mitsu (Japanese: 靉光) (June 24, 1907 - January 19, 1946) was a Japanese artist and painter. He was also known as…
Ai-Mitsu (Japanese: 靉光) (June 24, 1907 - January 19, 1946) was a Japanese artist and painter. He was also known as Akemitsu or his birth name, Nichiro Ishimura (石村 日郎). He is usually identified as a Surrealist although he also painted works that can be classified in other styles and genres. He was born into a small landowning family in 1907 in Hiroshima, and given the name Nichiro Ishimura, which he later changed to Ai-Mitsu when he moved to Tokyo to pursue his career as an artist. In 1934 he married Kie, a teacher of the deaf who helped support him through his struggles as an artist. His most famous work is "Landscape with an Eye" (1938), currently held in the collection of the National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo. It consists of shapeless forms with a large eye in a landscape setting. In 1944 he was conscripted and sent to China in the months after the war, where he died of a fever, possibly due to malaria and dysentery, on the outskirts of Shanghai. In March - May 2007, a retrospective exhibition commemorating the 100th anniversary of Aimitsu's birth was held at the National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo.
Kiyoshi Saitō (斎藤 清, Saitō Kiyoshi; April 27, 1907 – November 14, 1997, born in Aizubange, Fukushima) was a…
Kiyoshi Saitō (斎藤 清, Saitō Kiyoshi; April 27, 1907 – November 14, 1997, born in Aizubange, Fukushima) was a sōsaku-hanga artist in 20th-century Japan.
Shigeru Morita (Japanese: 森田茂, romanized: Morita Shigeru; 30 March 1907 – 2 March 2009) was a Japanese oil painter. His…
Shigeru Morita (Japanese: 森田茂, romanized: Morita Shigeru; 30 March 1907 – 2 March 2009) was a Japanese oil painter. His works were mainly centered on western-style paintings, and were exhibited multiple times across his career.
Masayoshi Ise (伊勢正義, 28 February 1907 – 18 November 1985) was a Japanese painter. His work was part of the painting…
Masayoshi Ise (伊勢正義, 28 February 1907 – 18 November 1985) was a Japanese painter. His work was part of the painting event in the art competition at the 1936 Summer Olympics.
Gihachiro Okuyama (奥山 儀八郎, Okuyama Gihachirō; February 17, 1907 – October 1, 1981) was a 20th-century Japanese…
Gihachiro Okuyama (奥山 儀八郎, Okuyama Gihachirō; February 17, 1907 – October 1, 1981) was a 20th-century Japanese commercial artist and woodblock printmaker. He was a prolific artist of the shin-hanga and sōsaku-hanga styles. Okuyama is noted for his landscape prints, both in color and black-and-white, as well as his simple prints of scenes that interject elements of the modernization of Japan into an otherwise traditional view.